Matthew 4:22 These two were sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, mending their fishnets. Jesus made the same offer to them, and they were just as quick to follow, abandoning boat and father. (The Message Bible)
The two mentioned first above are James and John. The same offer was the offer given to Peter and Andrew, “follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” That’s the way we sang about it when I was a child. Now that I am older the person who stands out to me in this story is the father, Zebedee. What did his boy’s departure mean for him? Was he going to have to perform more labor with his sons gone, get up earlier, come home more tired? Would he have to push back plans to retire? Would he be responsible for daughters-in-law and grandchildren? Would his wife be miserable, disappointed, angry with their decision? No one lives in a vacuum- or put more poetically by John Donne, “No man is an island.” When God changes the life of one person, God often disrupts the lives of others at the same time. Faith is dealing with the new situations of life even when they come in a roundabout way. We never hear what happened to Zebedee. I hope he was a blessing to his boys and found his boys to be a blessing to him as well as others. Has God shuffled the relational deck in your life? How are you handling it?
Logan Memorial Presbyterian Church 